BMW works in association with Daimer under development of a new wireless inductive charging standart

BMW works in association with Daimer under development of a new wireless inductive charging standart

BMW and Daimer are are working under the development of a new wireless inductive charging standart.BMW will also show wireless charging technology in the i8 hybrid sports car at this week’s consumer electronics show in Las Vegas

BMW will show wireless charging technology in the i8 hybrid sports car at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

How does it work?

Using a magnetic field to transmit electricity between a base pad on the garage floor or street and a coil on the underside of the vehicle, drivers would be able to avoid retrieving cables from the trunk and getting their hands dirty while refolding them.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz owner Daimler AG agreed last July to work together on wireless charging. Under pressure to meet tough emissions regulations, both carmakers have promised to broaden their range of electric vehicles. Mercedes-Benz already offers the electric B-Class and a plug-in hybrid version of its top-of-the-line S-Class model.

Today’s prototype takes two hours to replenish the battery of the i8, which can drive in electric-only mode for 23 miles, about the same time as using a normal cable. BMW also sells the i3 battery-powered city car as part of the “i” sub-brand it created to showcase its clean-car technology.

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BMW had already worked on contactless charging in a previous partnership with Siemens AG, testing prototypes in Berlin in 2011. Fulton Innovation, a unit of Alticor Inc., also showed the technology that year on Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA)’s Roadster electric model.

So, more likely we'll see fully-functional system of a wireless charging in BMW i8.